The Effect of Wellness Programs on Employee Performance at The Technical University of Kenya

Abstract

The quest for organizations to improve the health, job satisfaction, and overall performance of their employees has resulted into the adoption of wellness program. This applies for the Technical University of Kenya (TUK) where employee performance is considered integral in delivering quality education to students pursuing various courses. However, the effectiveness of these programs adopted at the TUK remains underexplored and especially with regards to how they impact on employee well-being and performance. This study sought to address this gap by examining how wellness programs impact on the performance of the employees at the university. The study used the descriptive research design and targeted the entire staff population using stratified random sampling to gather data from a representative sample of 182 individuals. The collected quantitative data was analyzed using SPSS. The findings revealed a moderate positive relationship between wellness programs and employee performance, with regression analysis showing that these programs accounted for 31.4% of the variance in performance. The qualitative findings indicated that wellness initiatives boosted morale, reduced absenteeism, and enhanced staff retention, though there were gaps in stress management and sports participation. The study, therefore, concluded that while the wellness programs at TUK had a positive impact, targeted improvements were required in stress management and sports activities. The study recommended the implementation of stress management workshops, enhancement of sports programs, and establishment of a feedback mechanism to continuously adapt and improve wellness initiatives